Written in cobalt blue on the bottom of this jar is a single Chinese character (Korean: chung). Even after the Korean alphabet, known as hangeul, was created in 1443, official court documents and writings by literati continued to use Chinese characters. Chung probably refers to Chunghūi-dang, a building (now lost) within the Ch’angdōk palace complex in modern Seoul that King Gojong (r. 1864–1907) used to receive foreign envoys.